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People who say “yes that’s nice, but isn’t it still super expensive to lift all that material into orbit?” should consider that space based resources alter that
by marktangotango 6y ago
People who say “yes that’s nice, but isn’t it still super expensive to lift all that material into orbit?” should consider that space based resources alter that equation drastically.
First in space based, low cost sources of raw materials are near earth asteroids and asteroids that cross our orbital plane. Second is the moon and it shallow gravity well, much lower energy required to reach orbit from the surface of the moon than from the surface of the earth. Similarly, Mars has a much lower gravity than earth. Then we have the asteroid belt and outer planets and their moons.
I believe it is evident that once a basic level of resource extraction AND production are available ON orbit, it will be game over and vast fortunes will be made.
The question for anyone with an entrepreneurial bent well be; how to contribute?
- bluGill 6y ago> The question for anyone with an entrepreneurial bent well be; how to contribute? Before that question you need to ask when to contribute. The long term fortunes to be made are obvious. What isn't clear is when. Long term might mean 200 years of development before any money is to be made, and thus you shouldn't invest as you will be dead before there is a payoff. But Long term might be 3 years, in which case it is too late for first mover advantage, the first movers have already (secretly?) put a large sum into their investments - but there might be a profit to me made as a second mover. Of course often the second mover is the one who makes the real money (Bill Gates wasn't a first mover in PC operating systems, Digital Research at least was before him), so it isn't clear at all when you should get into the market. Good luck. If I had real insight I wouldn't be posting it here I'd be putting everything I had into my investments.